Rules? What Rules?
by OriksGaming
Summary: Yoda and Obi-Wan have decided that Luke must remain untrained until he's old enough to defend himself. Qui-Gon has decided that's a load of Bantha poodoo.
1. Don't try this at home

**_Rules? What Rules?_**

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story itself. Although I suppose Disney could lay claim to this as well if they wanted to. I wouldn't know, seeing as I'm not fluent in legalese.

Summary: Yoda and Obi-Wan have decided that Luke must remain untrained until he's old enough to defend himself. Qui-Gon has decided that's a load of Bantha poodoo.

Chapter One: Don't try this at home

* * *

It was right there! So close and yet so far away. Standing on his bed, Luke stared longingly at the miniature TIE fighter lying on the top of the dresser across the room. Luke pouted as he remembered his Uncle Owen placing it there earlier in the day, out of his reach. Apparently it 'wasn't nice' to refuse to share your toys. Luke didn't care; that Biggs kid should have brought his own!

"Use the force, Luke." Luke stumbled and fell on his butt as he searched for the source of the voice. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't see anyone else in the room and he struggled back to his feet, again staring at the TIE.

"Concentrate on the toy." Luke glanced from side to side, again looking for the mysterious voice. Maybe he should just do what the voice said? Well, he didn't know what concentrate meant anyways, so he turned back to the TIE.

"It means focus," the voice said. "Oh, Force; you don't know what that means either, do you?"

"I know what focus means!" Luke cried indignantly. Of course he knew what it meant! He was four years old, after all. He wasn't as stupid as the voice was implying.

"Focus on the TIE, Luke." Luke considered disobeying the voice, just to spite it for calling him stupid, but after a few moments of deliberation, he decided that he had nothing better to do anyway. And it wasn't all that different from what he'd been doing before, at that. So he went back to staring at the TIE, his eyes narrowed to slits, and he focused on it for all he was worth.

"Very good, Luke," the rude voice said again. "Now reach out to it." Luke stretched out his arm as far as he could; Nothing happened, and he took the opportunity to examine his arm. It was tanned from the hot Tatooine suns, and it was also somewhat-

"Reach out with the force. Not your arm, Youngling." Luke began to lower his arm again.

"Wait!" the voice said. "You should probably keep your arm up, actually. To help you focus." Luke wished the voice would stop contradicting itself and just give him straightforward instructions. He glared all around him as he raised his arm once again, and the voice seemed to get the message.

"Use the force, Luke," the voice said again. Luke rolled his eyes. He hoped the voice would just get on with it. He wanted the toy, sure, but listening to the droning voice was rather boring. "Feel the energy deep inside of you. Imagine a light and submerge yourself within it!" The voice seemed to be getting excited, but there was a small problem.

"Uh, Mr. Voice? Wha's submarge mean?"

He heard the voice sigh, rather loudly, before it answered. "Submerge, Youngling. It means to go under or inside."

"Why didn't you say that in the first place?" Luke grumbled.

"Ahem," the voice said, clearing its throat. "Feel the light, and submerge yourself within it. Grab onto it Luke, and feel the force within."

Luke glanced around skeptically, but ultimately decided to follow the voice's directions. He imagined the twin suns of Tatooine, the brightest things he knew. He held that image for a second before it began to change on its own volition. Seconds later, he could instead see a bright light. He imagined that he was there, within it. At this point, he had forgotten the voice's directions, and was merely following his instinct.

The light was all around him, and it filled him up. It was the brightest thing Luke had ever seen, but as he stared straight into it, it didn't blind him. Instead, he felt immeasurably warm, and full of energy.

"That's very good, Luke," the voice said, and it snapped Luke from his reverie. He knew his normal response would be to glare at the voice, wherever it was, but somehow he couldn't bring himself to do it right then, as full of light as he was. The light was soothing, and his worries fell away as if they had never been. He heard the voice speaking in the background again, but he didn't pay it much attention.

Instead, he listened to the light. It didn't speak per se, but he suddenly had a strong urge to once again lift his arm, which he had let drop while he was enraptured by the light. He focused on the TIE fighter, and now he knew exactly what to do. He reached out with the light, and pulled it to him. It shook slightly, before it slowly floated over to Luke and into his outstretched hand. He stared at the toy in wonder as his control over the light slipped and left him, upon which he felt strangely drained of energy.

"Wow," Luke whispered. "Did I just do that?"

"Yes, Young-" the voice began, but Luke once again ignored it.

"I can do magic!" Luke shouted, springing up from his bed, still clutching the TIE tightly in his hand. He ran out of the room shouting, "Unca Owen! Aunt Beru! I can do magic!"

Qui-Gon flickered into view, shaking his head at Luke's back and thanking the force that he'd had the foresight to wait until Luke's aunt and uncle were out of the house. He sighed to himself. Force knew that the boy would need training- he had no idea what his padawan was thinking, just acquiescing to the couple's wishes and letting the supposed future savior of the galaxy go untrained. Fortunately for Luke's destiny, Qui-Gon had never been one for following the rules.

Unfortunately for Qui-Gon, he'd just seen an example of what he could expect for at least the next four years in regards to Luke, if not more. It was strange really, when the boy's father had been rather quiet- the exact opposite of Luke's exuberance- as a child, almost emotionless at first. Of course, it could just be the fact that one had been raised a slave and one was being raised in freedom with loving guardians, or that Anakin had been over twice Luke's age when Qui-Gon had first met him. Whatever the reason, Qui-Gon knew that for the next few years, his patience would be tried like it never had before.

He groaned as he floated after the future savior of the galaxy. The incredibly loud future savior of the galaxy. The incredibly stubborn future savior of the galaxy. The incredibly- Okay, he needed to stop that line of thought immediately, before he managed to talk himself out training the boy altogether.

* * *

Luke wasn't exactly the ideal Jedi in certain areas. For instance, it was truly a struggle just getting him to sit down for meditation, much less actually teach him to meditate.

 _"Sit down, Youngling."_

 _"Don' wanna."_

 _"You're going to need to sit down in order to meditate."_

 _"Whassat?"_

 _"Meditation, Luke, is a process in which one focuses their mind or thinks deeply on a subject. You will be using it to connect with the Force, and to find your inner peace."_

 _"I don' wan' peas!"_

 _"Peace, Luke, peace. Not peas."_

 _"Oh, ok . . . can I go outside now?"_

 _"No. We're meditating. Remember?"_

 _"We are?"_

 _"Yes."_

 _"Oh."_

Although, while he did have the patience of a normal young boy, and not an indoctrinated Jedi youngling, he was particularly talented in most other aspects of the force. He could already heal cuts or scrapes easily- he tended to get those a lot, with his natural recklessness, so this was a particularly important skill. He was practically prodigal when it came to levitation and various physical manipulations of objects, which was to be expected, when his father had had an absurd midicholorian count that must have been passed onto his son.

He was quickly learning Force Concealment, mainly due to the fact that Qui-Gon devoted an excessive amount of time to teaching it. It was very necessary, due to the fact that without it, Luke's force presence would have grown enough that he would have been discovered by the Emperor or Vader within a number of months. His realized force presence was one of the downsides to teaching Luke at a young age, before he could adequately defend himself and Qui-Gon did have to remind Luke quite a number of times before he started holding the concealment constantly.

Luke wasn't particularly well versed in most body enhancement force powers, owing to his young age. It would be more harmful than beneficial to work on those until he was much older.

As Luke grew older, Qui-Gon began to send him on minor excursions. In the beginning, it was to simply help his neighbors where he could. Luke had shown considerable resistance at first, but gradually grew used to the menial tasks.

 _"I believe the Loneozner family is having difficulties with their R4 unit."_

 _"So?"_

 _"You are going to help them out."_

 _"Nu-uh."_

 _"Yes, you are"_

 _"Nope."_

 _"I will assist you in learning one superfluous force skill for every five tasks of my choosing that you complete."_

 _"Master Qui-Gon?"_

 _"Yes, Luke?"_

 _"What's superfluous mean?"_

 _"It means unnecessary. In your case, you simply do not require many force skills, due to your isolation and lack of complicated or abstract tasks that would require them."_

 _"Well, that's not my fault."_

 _"I didn't say it was, youngling."_

 _"Just making sure. What kind of force powers could I learn anyways?"_

 _"There are too many to name without writing them down."_

 _"Should I go get something to write with then?"_

 _"I couldn't even list them all. As you may have noticed, I'm not exactly corporeal, and I don't have a way of writing down the information."_

 _"Then how will I know what to ask for?"_

 _"It's a rather complicated explanation, really."_

 _"Master Qui-Gon . . . stop being dramatic, and just tell me!"_

 _"Younglings . . . no patience these days."_

 _"Have 'younglings' ever been patient?"_

 _"Not really. But one can dream."_

 _"Well, I'm not patient either. I wanna know!"_

 _"As I've undoubtedly told you, I'm the only Jedi- of those who have become one with the Force- currently able to manifest as a visible apparition to the living."_

 _"You never told me that. And that was way more complicated than it needed to be. You really could have just said you're the only dead Jedi who could talk to me."_

 _"Well, now you know. And youngling? There is no death. There is only-"_

 _"The force. I know, I know. Don't worry, old man. I'm not your last padawan. No senility for me!"_

 _"He's not senile . . . just stupid."_

 _"Well, whatever he is, let's get back on topic. How would you know so many force techniques to teach me if you consider them inconsequential or useless?"_

 _"I never said they're useless, youngling. However, it's true that I've never used many of the possible force techniques."_

 _"Then how could you teach me, Master?_

 _"While I may not know them, I'm in contact with those that do."_

 _"Uh, come again? I thought you said that there were only two Jedi Masters alive, which included your decision making impaired apprentice. Are you talking to Yoda about different force powers or something?"_

 _"Not exactly. I'm actually in contact with a few Jedi who have managed to maintain their consciousness. While they didn't know how to appear to the living, and it is far too long since their death to learn, I am still able to commune with them."_

 _"But master Qui-Gon! There is no death! There's only . . . the force."_

 _"Don't patronize me, youngling. First you wish for me to simplify it, and when I do, you mock me. Do you want me to go back to my 'overly complicated' speeches?"_

 _"No, no. Keep it simple!"_

 _"That's what I thought. The point is, the Jedi who accidentally retain their individuality upon death tend to be those extremely skilled at manipulating the force, which makes finding those who know abstract skills a much simpler task."_

 _"So what kind of skills could you find for me?"_

 _"Through my good friend Plo-Koon, you could learn weather manipulation, although it would take years of focus and study to master."_

 _"That's lame. Does your friend have any other cool skills?"_

 _"He did develop a skill that he calls 'Electric Judgement,' but I won't allow you to learn it until you are much older and more in control of your emotions. It's a very difficult skill that is closer to the dark side than many of the masters of the Jedi Order were happy with."_

 _"So if I'm not going to learn those two, what others are there?"_

 _"There's Ionize-"_

 _"That sounds awesome. What does it do?"_

 _"It's actually a rather useful skill that allows you to overload electrical systems. It was commonly used to shut down droids, and many chose to call it 'Droid Disable.'_

 _"I wanna learn that one, then."_

 _"Are you sure? I haven't even listed very many yet."_

 _"I'm sure. And if I want to learn more things, I'll just have to help people around here. I'll only need to do five tasks per force skill. So when can we get started on this Ionize skill?"_

 _"Hold your Banthas, Luke. I refuse to begin teaching you until you've completed five tasks already."_

 _"Aww, Kriff!"_

 _"Language, youngling."_

 _"Why do you keep calling me youngling? It's kind of annoying."_

 _"Youngling is the term that we Jedi used to refer to children. You are young; therefore, you are a youngling."_

 _"Any chance you'll stop doing that?"_

 _"Not until you are no longer a youngling, Luke."_

 _"I didn't think so- wait, when will I not be a youngling?"_

 _"Compared to me? Not until you're in your fifties at least. I have every right to continue calling you a youngling until you near the age at which I died."_

 _"Aww, Kriff."_

 _"Again- watch your language, youngling."_

 _"Yeah, yeah. Whatever, old man. What family did you say I needed to help?"_

 _"The Loneozner family. They're having problems with their R4 droid."_

 _"I'll get right on it. But you'd better keep your promise! Only five per force skill!"_

 _"Jedi do not lie, youngling. We obfuscate, withhold the truth, or divert attention, but never lie."_

 _"That's a load of Bantha poodoo, and you know it."_

 _"Be that as it may, you have a job to do. The droid won't fix itself."_

 _"I'm going, I'm going . . ."_

A few years after Qui-Gon began bribing him to complete menial tasks, his master decided that he needed experience in actual battle. As Luke was a Jedi padawan hiding from the Empire, he couldn't really go on a killing spree, due to his being a Jedi, and he couldn't search for more Jedi padawans, due to the fact that Jedi were hunted. There probably weren't any left in the first place, and even if they were, he didn't exactly have any way of finding them. So instead of the usual Jedi training methods, Qui-Gon began to send Luke to take care of any dangerous beasts nearing the Tatooinian settlements.

Most notably were the Krayt dragons. It was rare that one would come close enough to be a danger, but it did happen.

 _"Luke."_

 _"Mmmmm . . .Yes, Master? If you hadn't noticed, it's about three in the morning . . . can this wait?"_

 _"No, no it can't . . . Luke, wake up . . . you leave me no choice. Luke! The Emperor's here to capture you!"_

 _"Ah! What? Where? . . . Qui-Gon, stop doing that. I told you my nightmares in strict confidence."_

 _"And I haven't told anyone else. Besides, your nightmares are incredibly strange and if they get you out of bed, I'm not going to shy away from utilizing their effects."_

 _"I don't need to be awakened with the thought that there's a pedophile right nearby!"_

 _"As I said, your dreams are incredibly strange."_

 _"And it was incredibly strange how you told me about dad's fall. I mean, seriously. 'Palpatine preyed on your father when he was a young boy.' Why would you say it like that?!"_

 _"In my defense, I had no idea that your twelve year old mind would take it way out of context and come up with warped nightmares based on the misunderstanding."_

 _"But still! There were so many other ways you could have said it!"_

 _"That's enough of that."_

 _"At least admit you made a mistake or at least a really strange decision!"_

 _"Anyway, the reason I woke you-"_

 _"It had better be a good reason. I don't make a habit of waking at three in the morning! And don't try to play this off as some kind of Jedi training. You've told me enough stories for me to know that a number of Jedi slept in until the afternoon on days when they didn't have a mission. I'm not conditioning myself to wake up at three in the morning, no matter what you say, Master."_

 _"You could have just let me speak. It was in fact for a specific reason. There is a Krayt dragon nearby."_

 _"How 'nearby'?_

 _"A little over a kilometer away."_

 _"Son of a Bantha!"_

 _"My sentiments exactly. Somehow, I doubt you wish to lose a few neighbors on this fine morning."_

 _"You got that right. Kriff. A Krayt dragon! Master, what am I supposed to do with a kriffing Krayt dragon?! I don't have a lightsaber!"_

 _"Language, Luke."_

 _"I think I've got better things to worry about right now, Master! A Krayt dragon is more important than some foul language."_

 _"I'll concede the point, youngling."_

 _"But Master? How am I supposed to take care of a Krayt dragon?"_

 _"You have a vibroblade and a blaster. Use them in conjunction with the force, and I have faith that you will get the job done."_

 _"I'm not sure about this, Master. But I have to try. I can't just let it kill innocent people!"_

* * *

And that was Luke's current quest. He was to kill a Krayt dragon lingering dangerously close to the surrounding moisture farms. Luke jogged three quarters of the way to the dragon; with the endurance training Qui-Gon had started him on, it wasn't overly tiring, and he only slowed down in order to maintain the element of surprise.

Luke was rather nervous about his mission. He had never seen a real live Krayt dragon before, much less fought one, and it would be an entirely new experience. He'd also heard the tales about their fearsomeness and strength. Equipped with only a vibroblade and a blaster, he couldn't help but be nervous.

It wasn't long before he happened upon his beastly foe. "Whoa," Luke whispered. The dragon hadn't reached full maturity, which was rather lucky for Luke. It was only around thirty meters, which, while a considerable size, wasn't even close to the average size of a fully grown Krayt dragon, forty five meters.

Luke crept closer, step by step. While it may not have been honorable to kill an enemy in its sleep, he would do what it took to protect his relatives and neighbors. He gripped his blaster, preparing to fire into the dragon's barely protected cranium, hoping against hope that it wouldn't wake up.

Luck wasn't on his side, or perhaps the force was testing him. Whatever it was, the Krayt dragon began to stir when Luke flipped his blaster from stun to kill. As he stepped forward to get a better shot, the dragon leapt up and charged towards Luke. He was understandably startled by this, and made to leap out of the way. Unfortunately, the dragon was much faster than he had anticipated and instead of a calculated jump, he ended up diving to the side. He landed heavily and was forced to release his blaster, which went skittering away.

Luke scrambled to his feet in order to chase after it, but the dragon had turned around and was charging again. "Oh, Kriff." Luke panicked, and did the only thing he could think to do. With not enough time to get out of the dragon's way- it was rather large and it was already close by when it started its latest charge- he instead jumped straight up.

His split second decision was actually partially due to a holothriller he'd seen once about this exact situation. Well, the thriller hadn't starred a Jedi in training, because the Empire had outlawed anything relating to the Jedi around the time of Luke's birth. But it had been a daring explorer, instead, who had taken a running leap off of a cliff to land on the back of a Krayt dragon.

At the time, Luke had scoffed at it, pointing out how stupid the move was. Now, his first hand experience was affirming his beliefs; it was in fact incredibly stupid to jump onto the back of a Krayt dragon. For one thing, as soon as he landed, he had to struggle to hold on by one of the dragon's spikes, while at the same time trying not to be impaled by another spike.

For another, he had no idea what he was going to do next. Every time he tried to reach for his vibroblade, the dragon made a sharp turn or sped up. Luke wasn't proficient enough with illusions yet to use them in the heat of battle, or while riding on the back of a Krayt dragon, so the dragon certainly knew that he was there. And it was trying its hardest to get him off. Luke had to hold on tightly with both hands in order to not get unseated when the dragon took to slamming into the side of a rocky outcropping.

Luke couldn't see where he'd dropped his blaster, so retrieving it with telekinesis was out. He couldn't reach his vibroblade, so that was out. His only remaining option seemed to be using the force. He cursed his lack of planning; if he'd remembered to set up some kind of illusion, the dragon wouldn't have been alerted to his presence at all, but he had gotten arrogant and assumed that he could sneak up on it without any form of concealment.

Nothing for it now. He would just have to use the force. He raised his right hand, tightening his left hand so he didn't get thrown off, and pushed. One hand wasn't enough to hold on, owing to the recoil from the point blank force wave and the dragon's continued struggling. Even as he fell and prepared to roll and cushion the fall, Luke could see the dragon. As if in slow motion, the beast's cranium crumpled inwards, before it exploded, showering the area- and Luke- in brain fluid and pieces of the dragon's head.

Luke just laid there next to the dragon's carcass for a few minutes, exulting in his success. Maybe he could have done it much more easily, if he'd been more prepared, but in his defense, it had been barely three thirty in the morning by the time he'd reached the dragon. He hadn't exactly been wide awake or thinking clearly. He was now, however, just calming down from the adrenaline rush.

"Luke." Luke groaned; he'd been hoping to not hear from his master for at least a few more minutes. The desert sand was almost cool at night and he'd have liked just five more minutes to relax after killing a Krayt dragon. But no; no rest for him. He was a Jedi apprentice and needed to be berated for everything he'd done wrong immediately.

"What?" Luke wasn't really in the mood to chat at the moment, and he definitely wasn't in the mood for a complete list of every single one of his mistakes.

"The pearls, Luke," Qui-Gon said.

"What pearls?" Luke asked, straining to remember if his master had ever mentioned any specific pearls before. At least his Master wasn't lecturing him about his stupidity.

"The Krayt dragon pearls," Qui-Gon said. "Or pearl, I suppose. We won't know until you find them- or it."

"Oh, those," Luke muttered. "Wait a second. You mean I've got to stick my hand into that thing?" He gestured vaguely towards the dragon carcass lying next to him.

"Yes, Padawan," Qui-Gon said. "Those pearls won't harvest themselves, and as you may have noticed, I'm not exactly corporeal."

"That's just great. I killed it; why can't someone else get their hand all slimy?" Luke stomped his foot, feeling very much like a two year old. He ignored the feeling and continued to pout, despite knowing that it was his exhaustion speaking. With the adrenaline wearing off, he could feel his lack of sleep acutely.

"I assumed you'd rather claim the pearls for yourself. You did kill the beast by yourself, after all. However, I suppose you could walk all the way to the nearest town, pay for some help, and split the value of the pearl or pearls two or three ways." As usual, Qui-Gon was the voice of reason, if not a very welcome one.

"Ok, I'm getting up," Luke mumbled.

"Now actually get up," Qui-Gon said fifteen seconds later, when Luke still hadn't shown any signs of movement.

"Fine," Luke said, groaning as he slowly clambered to his feet.

Twenty minutes later, Luke was holding two pearls. "I had hoped you could use one of them as a lightsaber crystal," Qui-Gon said with a sigh.

"Why can't I?" Luke asked.

"They're red," Qui-Gon said bluntly. "You're a Jedi. You're not allowed to have a red lightsaber."

"Makes sense," Luke said. "I'd probably be more annoyed if I'd actually wanted a red lightsaber. But I think I'd rather have a green one."

"Which will be difficult to acquire," Qui-Gon said. "But not impossible."

"And how do you suggest I get a green crystal, Master?" Luke asked.

"Luke," Qui-Gon said in an apparent non sequitur. "Is there any way you could leave the farm for a few days without worrying your Aunt and Uncle?"

"You mean to go somewhere? I could probably make some excuse to go to Mos Eisley for speeder parts. They know I like tinkering with machines." Luke frowned. It might be that Qui-Gon just wanted him to sell the pearls, but getting to Mos Eisley and back using the speeder shouldn't take a few days. He'd probably be able to find a buyer for the pearls fairly easily. Even on Tatooine, they were highly prized.

"Not to Mos Eisley, Luke. Although that will be a stop on our way."

"What? A stop on our . . ." Luke trailed off and stared at Qui-Gon, his mouth hanging open. "Off planet? You want me to go off planet?"

"That I do, Padawan," Qui-Gon said.

"Where did you have in mind?" Luke asked, crossing his arms.

"Coruscant," Qui-Gon said bluntly.

"Are you crazy, old man?!" Luke gaped at his master. "I thought Obi-Wan was the senile one!"

"I assure you I am not senile," Qui-Gon huffed. "And Obi-Wan isn't senile, he's just-"

"Stupid," Luke finished. "I know, Master. But you're looking that way too right now. I'm not going to Coruscant without a very good explanation. The Emperor's there! And Dad's probably there too!"

"I have it on good authority that the Emperor and your father are leaving tomorrow to inspect something called a 'Death Star.' I wasn't able to figure out what a Death Star is, but I do know that they will both be away from Coruscant for nine days."

"And what's this good authority, Master?" Luke asked.

"Myself, of course," Qui-Gon said. "Did you never wonder where I am when I'm not with you? Sometimes I simply talk to Yoda. Other times I watch over my previous apprentice. Not often, though. He lives an extraordinarily dull life. And sometimes I even follow your father around. I don't do that often either, because really, it pains me to see what he's become.

Most of the time, however, when I'm not with you, I trail Palpatine. As a force ghost, he can't sense me unless I choose to reveal myself, which I obviously never do, for him at least. I can glean valuable information from his dealings, as in this instance."

"Wow." Luke blinked. "I kind of just assumed you spent the time talking with other people who can still think even though they're dead."

"Padawan . . . do you know how boring most people who have retained their consciousnesses are? A good percentage of them were anti-social shut ins when they were living. Most of the people who retain their minds, even accidentally, are Jedi who devote their entire lives to studying the force. Many of them are as dry as this desert. And the ones that aren't lived centuries or millennia ago. We don't exactly have much common ground."

"Oh, yeah," Luke said. "That makes sense, I guess. Now, explain to me why exactly I need to go to Coruscant. It's only what? The number one imperial stronghold! And I'm a Jedi padawan. Like I said, it better be a good reason, Master."

"I think it's time for you to create your lightsaber."

"Yeah," Luke said. "I kinda got that when you told me I could maybe use one of the Krayt dragon pearls as a lightsaber crystal. But they were both red."

"Yes, Luke," Qui-Gon said. "Which means you need to find a crystal elsewhere."

"Ok," Luke said. "I can agree with that. But not that I need to go to Coruscant. I thought I'd need to go to Ilum. You know, cause it's the planet all the Jedi padawans used to go to in order to get their lightsaber crystals."

"I remember, Padawan. Again, I'm not senile." Qui-Gon huffed again, before his shoulders slumped and his cheeks became bright blue, the ghostly equivalent of a blush. "It's just, well, the Order didn't exactly have anyone memorize the coordinates. Or if they did, that person isn't still living. It was written down in the database, among all of the information lost when Palpatine turned the temple into the palace. So you could search for months in the unknown regions- we know it's in the 7G sector, but that isn't very specific. Or you could take a week long trip to Coruscant while the main danger is away. Your choice, Padawan."

"Fine, we'll do it your way," Luke said. "But I don't have a ship. Or money. How exactly am I supposed to get to Coruscant?"

"Have you forgotten about the pearls already, Padawan?" Qui-Gon asked, frowning at him. "You're a little young to be going senile, but you could be a special case."

"Shut up, Master. I'm tired, ok? I'm not at full functioning capacity!" Luke crossed his arms and glared at Qui-Gon. "So . . . you're saying we need to hire a ship. You've apparently been planning for this trip. So do you have a ship in mind?"

"Not really," Qui-Gon said. "Any ships I scout out now might leave before you reach the city. Almost no one around here is force sensitive enough to see me, so I couldn't possibly detain anyone. No, this is a task you'll need to do for yourself."

"Alright," Luke said. "I'm really tired-" he punctuated this with a yawn "so I'm going to go back to bed. I'll convince my Aunt and Uncle and we'll leave later. End of story. I need sleep." He turned and began the kilometer walk back to the moisture farm.

"Luke-"

"Later!"

* * *

 **A/N: Luke is four in the first two scenes, twelve in the third, and then seventeen for the rest of the chapter.**

 **As usual, follow it if you enjoy and want to see more. A favorite would be appreciated as well, if you really enjoyed it. If you enjoyed it so much you want to tell me explicitly, leave a review! If you have issues with it, leave a review and tell me the problem(s).**

 **As with all of my stories, updates will probably be erratic, as my interest waxes and wanes. So don't get your hopes up. I do try to update regularly but real world issues often interfere. Sorry.**


	2. There's nobody there

**_Rules? What Rules?_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story itself. Although I suppose Disney could lay claim to this as well if they wanted to. I wouldn't know, seeing as I'm not fluent in legalese.

* * *

Summary: Yoda and Obi-Wan have decided that Luke must remain untrained until he's old enough to defend himself. Qui-Gon has decided that's a load of Bantha poodoo.

* * *

Chapter Two: There's nobody there

* * *

Luke glanced around, taking in the sight of Mos Eisley. He'd never really had reason to come to the spaceport city before. Convincing his aunt and uncle to let him go there for droid parts was especially difficult, and he'd eventually had to use a bit of force persuade to convince them that they were really rare parts that he couldn't get anywhere else and that he would be fine.

He felt a little dirty using the force on his aunt and uncle, but it wasn't anything harmful to them, and according to his master, it was necessary that he go to Coruscant. So he'd done it anyways, and now he was on his way to Mos Eisley Cantina.

He ignored the curious stares he was getting; he probably looked too innocent, especially for Mos Eisley, where some rather dangerous characters tended to gather. It was somewhat close to Jabba the Hutt's palace, and so it was a popular stop for bounty hunters.

Luke stepped into the dimly lit cantina, sweeping his gaze around, taking in the variety of non-humans and the fact that everyone seemed to be armed. It was a little unsettling, but no less than he'd heard and expected.

The cantina was conspicuously absent of droids, and Luke wondered what the reaction would have been if he'd brought any. There was a group of Bith musicians playing on one side of the cantina. He wandered over to the bartender, intent on questioning him about any pilots heading to Coruscant.

He was stopped when he got to the counter, by an obviously drunk creature with multiple eyes. "Negola dewaghi wooldugger?"

"I'm sorry," Luke said to the creature. "I don't understand you."

"He's saying he doesn't like you, kid." Another man had come up behind the creature. Clad in a v-neck t-shirt under a black vest, the man practically radiated annoyance. His next words made it clear where the man's frustration was aimed.

"He does this every day, like clockwork. Gets drunk, finds someone to get into a fight with- just be glad his buddies aren't here today. They're antagonistic, the lot of them. They've killed a number of patrons just for existing."

"Oh," Luke said. He'd heard stories from Qui-Gon about some terrible people, but it still made him a little bit cold inside to know that there were people out there entirely devoid of morals, willing to kill simply because they were bored or because someone else suggested it. "Thanks for the warning, ah . . ."

"Han Solo," the man introduced himself, gesturing behind him to a gigantic hairy creature- a wookie, if Luke was remembering correctly. "And this is Chewbacca, my co-pilot."

"Nice to meet you," Luke said, relieved that at least these two didn't seem to want to attack him. "I'm Luke- Luke Skywalker."

"Skywalker?" Han repeated, tilting his head slightly. "Like that hero in the clone wars? What's his name . . . Anston?"

"Anakin. He was my father," Luke said somberly. He might be taking a risk to introduce himself by his actual name to this man, and to confirm his father's identity, but from what he'd seen from the man's surface emotions, he wasn't planning on turning him over to the imps. And Luke had never believed in lying when he could tell the truth.

"Yeah, that was his name," Han said, snapping his fingers. "So- what brings a kid like you to a place like this?"

Luke wanted to protest being called a kid, but he was only seventeen, so he let it go. "I'm looking for a pilot. You said, uh, Chewbacca, right?" At the man's nod, he continued. "Yeah, so you said Chewbacca was your co-pilot, right? That means you have a ship?" He trailed off questioningly.

"That I do," Han began, before he was interrupted by a growl from the wookie. "Fine, _we_ do, you big furball. What's it to you, kid?"

"I'm looking to hire a pilot to take me to Coruscant," Luke said.

Han suddenly became more interested, sizing Luke up. "And why can't you just take a commercial flight?"

Luke laughed out loud. "Well, maybe there's the fact that it only comes around Tatooine once a year, if that. Also the fact that even if there was one ready to leave right now, it would still take days to reach Coruscant, and I'd be stuck there. I need to get there in less than a day, and I might need a quick escape."

"Then you've come to the right pilots," Han said proudly, gesturing to himself and Chewbacca. "I've got a ship with a 0.5 class warp drive. We can get you to Coruscant in mere hours."

"Wow," Luke said excitedly. "A 0.5? How heavily modified is it?"

"Pretty heavily, kid. It's a smuggling ship. It's not meant for a slow crawl."

"Well, it definitely sounds fast enough," Luke said. "Ok. I'll give you half of what I get for selling this-" he pulled out one of the pearls "if you take me to Coruscant and back. I'll be spending a day there so the round trip should take significantly less than three days, if you're not lying about your ship." There was no reason to tell the smuggler about the other one when even half of the price of one was probably massively overpaying. But Luke didn't really have a lot to spend money on, and one hundred and fifty thousand credits would buy anything he needed with a lot to spare.

"Is that a Krayt dragon pearl?" Han asked, somewhat incredulously. "I mean, I won't say no to the money, but you do know what you're offering, right?"

"I don't need it," Luke said, shrugging.

"Ok, if you're sure," Han said slowly.

"I am," Luke confirmed, nodding.

"Alright then," Han said. "What's a kid like you have to do in the imperial city anyways?"

"Stop calling me a kid," Luke grumbled. "And it's none of your business. You can keep a secret, right?"

"Of course, I can!" Han said indignantly. "What do you take me for? I may be curious, but I know how to keep my mouth shut."

"Good," Luke said. "I don't completely trust you yet, but I may just tell you at some point when I'm sure you won't go blabbing."

"I already said I don't go around blabbing my clients' secrets," Han said, frowning at Luke.

"Yes, I heard you," Luke said slowly. "And I believe you're telling the truth. It's just a big secret and I don't know you yet. If you're a smuggler, you should know there are things people don't want others to know."

"So what you're doing," Han said, lowering his voice. "It's not exactly up top?"

"It may or may not be," Luke said noncommittally, ignoring Han's groan. "Stop fishing . . . how soon can you be ready to go?"

"You want to leave as soon as possible?" Han asked him.

"Yes. So how soon?" he asked again.

"Give me an hour. The ship's at docking bay ninety four." Luke nodded, and watched Han as he turned around and left, Chewbacca following behind him.

* * *

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me," Luke said as soon as he saw the ship. "That thing's a piece of garbage! Can it even get off the ground?"

Han scowled at Luke. "She may not look like much, but she's the fastest ship you'll ever find. She'll get you off the ground, to Coruscant and back, no matter how much you hate the sight of her."

"Huh," Luke said. He didn't want to admit it, but he knew Han was right. He really shouldn't have judged the ship on its appearance. He personally thought TIE fighters looked terrible compared to older ships from the days of the Republic. But they served their purpose. Han's ship- one the smuggler appeared to have a very strong attachment to- may look rather clunky, but that didn't mean much, in comparison to the hyperdrive. Imperial shuttles looked blocky, and weren't very streamlined at all, but they could go just as fast as many other ships in hyperspace.

"What's 'her' name?" Luke asked. It would be rather awkward to keep referring to it as Han's ship in his head, especially if he was going to be spending a day long round trip in it.

"She's the Millenium Falcon, kid." Han gazed at his ship proudly, as if the name was something remarkable.

"The Millenium Falcon?" Luke sputtered. "What kinda stupid name is that?"

"Hey, don't-" Han began, but Luke wasn't finished.

"And what's a 'falcon', anyways?"

"A bat falcon, kid," Han said. "Have you really never heard of them?"

"Nope," Luke said. "And do you really want to go around advertising that your ship will take a thousand years to reach its destination?"

"That's not what it means," Han grumbled. "It means she'll last for a thousand years."

"In a scrap heap, sure," Luke said, smirking.

"Will you stop making fun of my ship and get in already!" Han growled. "I thought you were the one who wanted to leave immediately."

"You're right," Luke said, a little chagrined. While another five minutes arguing probably wouldn't make much of a difference, things could change suddenly. The Emperor might return to Coruscant while he was still there, and he'd feel really stupid if he got caught because of a five minute delay. He didn't share Qui-Gon's confidence that everything would be alright during his trip to the number one worst place in the galaxy for Jedi.

A few minutes later, Luke was sitting at the holo table in the Falcon, waiting for Han to finish readying the ship for takeoff. He was a little annoyed by the delay, but admitted that it would probably be better if Han took a couple minutes to do a system check. He didn't want the ship breaking down on him when he needed it the most.

"Buckle up, kid," Han said. "We're taking off, and we'll be going to hyperspace in about half a minute."

* * *

It turned out that Han hadn't been lying when he said his ship was the fastest Luke would find. They made the trip to Coruscant in under an hour, when it would normally take hours or days for most ships. He vowed to get a look at the hyperdrive before he and Han parted ways.

Stepping out of the ship and into Coruscant was an experience. Or Imperial Center, as it had been rechristened. Luke liked to think of it by the name it had once had and would have again in the future if he had anything to say about it. He'd been told stories about it by Qui-Gon, but nothing could have truly prepared him for the sight that greeted his eyes. Skyscrapers towered over smaller, but still huge buildings. The bright daylight gleamed off the top of tall towers, and Luke had to admit that it truly was a beautiful city.

For some reason he'd gotten it into his head that it would be dark and gloomy, after hearing that the beautiful city Qui-Gon had described had been turned into the Empire's capitol. It wasn't dark or gloomy in the least, although that could just be because the Emperor and his father-Vader weren't there. He really needed to break his habit of referring to Vader as his dad. He wanted to bring him back to the light, but he also knew that he would have to fight him, maybe multiple times, before he succeeded, if he succeeded- no, he couldn't think like that. He couldn't allow himself to not fight his best due to family ties.

"I'll comm you when I've finished selling the pearl," Han had said. Luke had waved him off; he honestly didn't want to waste the extra time selling the pearl, and he'd sensed that Han wouldn't swindle him. Besides, since Han was getting half of the price, he'd be motivated to negotiate harder. Beautiful or not, being in Coruscant was making him jumpy.

It was when he was meandering down the street, attempting to head towards the palace while trying to make it look like he wasn't heading towards the palace, that his master appeared.

"The palace should be-" Qui-Gon began, before he was interrupted by a yell from Luke.

"Master!" Luke's voice dropped to a whisper; it probably wouldn't help him maintain a low profile if people thought he was crazy. "Every time! Why can't you just slowly fade in and let me see you before speaking? Seriously, I'm going to have a heart attack before I reach my eighteenth birthday!"

Of course, Qui-Gon ignored him. "Ahem- as I was saying, the palace should be practically empty. You'll have to avoid servants, but the courtiers and nobles only go to the Palace when the Emperor is there."

"That's all well and good, Master," Luke said. "But it won't help me if I die from a heart attack before I even reach the palace."

"Oh, stop moaning about that already, Padawan." Qui-Gon rolled his eyes. "A good scare every once in a while will do you some good. You're far too relaxed."

"Master," Luke groaned. "There's a pretty big difference between noticing someone sneaking up on me and sensing a ghost that I can't sense until it appears to me."

"Is that how you refer to your Master?" Qui-Gon sniffed. "I am not an it."

"Master, I was-" Luke sighed and rubbed his forehead. His Master had been excellent at training Luke, but sometimes he wished that Qui-Gon was a little bit less whimsical. "Master, I meant any ghost. I know you're the only one right now, but when I'm talking about a random ghost, I'm going to call them an it, because I don't know their gender."

"And how many ghosts have you seen before?" Qui-Gon asked pointedly.

"Master, let it go already," Luke said, sighing again. "So- the palace. Can you guide me through? You said it used to be the Jedi temple before and that it hasn't changed much."

"I can," Qui-Gon said. "You'll simply need to take a left two corridors down from the doors. Then you'll need to go straight forward for three more corridors, before taking another left and continuing on until you've passed the ballroom. Finally, you should reach the stairs, which you'll take to the lower-"

"Not now," Luke hissed. "I'm not going to remember all that. Tell me when we're at the palace."

They walked the rest of the way to the palace in silence. Well, Luke walked. Qui-Gon did his float walk, where he mimed the act of walking because he was used to it, even though he wasn't actually touching the ground.

"We're here," Luke pointed out. 'Here' was the imperial palace, a hulking temple made of white marble. It was pretty impressive, and Luke could see why the Emperor hadn't changed much. Of course, it was also most likely because the Emperor got some sadistic pleasure out of using the former Jedi temple as his palace.

"I do have eyes," Qui-Gon said.

"Do you?" Luke challenged. "You don't have a physical pair of eyes."

"I can feel them," Qui-Gon said, placing one hand over his eye.

"Nu-uh," Luke said, shaking his head. "You're just feeling your ghostly synth-skin."

"I'm not entertaining your fantasy any longer, Luke," Qui-Gon said. "We need to get moving."

"Fine, fine," Luke said, stepping forwards.

"Wait," Qui-Gon said before Luke could enter the palace. "You need to cloak yourself, Padawan."

"Oh, right," Luke said. "Yeah, going in there fully exposed would probably have been a terrible idea, even with only servants in the palace."

"You're nowhere close to being a master at this," Qui-Gon said.

"Wow, way to just randomly insult me," Luke shot back.

"I'm simply reminding you that you need to concentrate," Qui-Gon sighed. "Must you be so antagonistic, Padawan?"

"I'm antagonistic, Master, when I get randomly insulted out of the blue." Luke grunted as he put up his force cloak and faded out of sight. Even Qui-Gon couldn't see him, as instead of a mind trick, it manipulated light and sound waves. As a bonus, this meant that the technique made him invisible to the cameras and droids inside of the palace, along with any people he needed to bypass.

"Only speak to me telepathically," Qui-Gon said out loud as they passed the doors.

 _"Yes, Master,"_ Luke said. _"Wait, why can you talk out loud then?"_ Luke let out a breath he'd been holding when they passed two guards stationed near the open doors.

"I can be very selective about who sees me," Qui-Gon explained. "No one who I haven't specifically chosen to see me will."

 _"Oh yeah,"_ Luke said. _"Ghost powers. Right. And Master?"_

"Yes, Padawan?"

 _"Why are the doors open?"_ Luke asked.

"The Palace doors?" Qui-Gon said. "Oh, make a left here. The palace is meant to be seen as accessible, which gives the impression that the Emperor is accessible to his people."

 _"The Sith Lord entertains normal, everyday people?"_ Luke asked incredulously.

"No, Padawan," Qui-Gon said. "He wishes it to appear as if he does. In reality, those guards stationed behind the doors will turn out anyone who isn't a noble or high ranking official."

 _"Yeah, that sounds more like what I expected,"_ Luke admitted.

"Left again," Qui-Gon said. The two walked in silence for the minute it took to reach the ballroom. They had almost passed it when something went wrong. Luke's comm crackled, which startled him enough that he dropped the Force Cloak.

"Skywalker!" Luke winced at Han's loud greeting.

"Not now!" he hissed before shutting off his comm and reapplying the force cloak. He released a breath he'd been holding when a glance all around him and a quick use of his force sense revealed no one nearby.

"That could have ruined the entire mission," Qui-Gon said disapprovingly. "You forgot to shut down your comm, Padawan?"

 _"It was an accident,"_ Luke said. _"And besides, no one saw or heard. I checked and I couldn't sense or see anyone in range."_

"The force is with you, Padawan," Qui-Gon said. "Go down these stairs."

 _"Or I got lucky,"_ Luke said.

"There is no luck," Qui-Gon said as he frowned at approximately Luke's location. "There is only the force."

 _"I know, I know."_ And he did. Qui-Gon had only said it about a million times. It was just like his master's stance on death.

 _"Wow, these are long stairs,"_ Luke said, glancing at Qui-Gon.

"Many simply take the elevator," Qui-Gon said. "But you're not supposed to be here, and people would notice an elevator in use, whether someone appeared to be on it or not.

 _"Yeah, yeah. I get it, Master. Finally, the bottom!"_

"It wasn't that difficult of a descent, Padawan," Qui-Gon said, shaking his head.

 _"Maybe not for you,"_ Luke retorted. _"You weren't actually walking."_

"I walked this path many times when I was living, Padawan. I know how arduous it is, or isn't, and if I could do it near the end of my life, you can do it at age seventeen."

 _"Fine, fine,"_ Luke said. _"But this doesn't mean I don't think you're simply forgetting how annoying those stairs are. It just means I think you're senile and delusional enough that nothing I say will get through to you, Master."_

"You say Master as if that small respect negates all of your previous insults, Padawan," Qui-Gon said drily.

 _"Doesn't it?"_ Luke asked, smirking and tilting his head before remembering that Qui-Gon couldn't see him.

"No, no it doesn't," Qui-Gon said, rolling his eyes. "Make a right here."

 _"I think it- whoa."_ Luke had completely forgotten what he was going to say the moment he'd entered the room. The many multicolored crystals sparkled, even in the dim lighting of the unoccupied room. There were mostly green and blue crystals, but Luke could make out the occasional magenta or silver, along with a few other rarer colors.

"Yes, quite a sight, isn't it?" Qui-Gon chuckled as Luke jerked around to face him.

 _"I forgot you were there, Master,"_ Luke said sheepishly.

"The many crystals are breathtaking," Qui-Gon agreed. "Can you feel one calling to you?"

 _"I think- maybe. I can feel something, but I don't know exactly where it's coming from, Master."_ Luke slowly turned around, trying to spot the source of the pull.

"Close your eyes Luke," Qui-Gon told him. "And just feel."

 _"Just feel, got it,"_ Luke said. He closed his eyes and tried to block out all thought, giving in to the force as he had many times before. The pull became more insistent and he found himself walking purposefully to one corner of the room. He didn't concern himself with which corner it was, instead only concentrating on the source of the call.

Without thinking, he reached out and grabbed one, feeling a sense of rightness as he held it in his hand. But he knew that wasn't all he had come here for; the force was telling him that he had one more to collect. He could sense his master's confusion as he strode to the other side of the room, but he ignored it.

He reached out with his right hand, as his left was already holding the first crystal. He almost recoiled as he felt the second crystal. It felt slimy, and crawling with the dark side. Luke wanted to drop it back in the pile, to run as far away as he could, but the force wanted him to take it, or at least that's how he chose to interpret the whispers of _take it, take it_ that he could hear urging him on.

Luke stepped back and opened his eyes. In his left hand was a green crystal, which was gratifying, as it had been his preference in color. In his right, as he'd suspected, was evidently a sith crystal. "Master?" he asked hesitantly.

Qui-Gon didn't answer for a moment, evidently just as confused about the sith crystal as Luke was. "I-" he began before pausing and tilting his head to the side. Luke stared at him, waiting for his master to continue. Suddenly, Qui-Gon straightened up again. "I have an idea. Keep both crystals, including the red crystal. Try not to touch it unless it's unavoidable."

"Yes Master," Luke said, before placing both crystals in separate pockets.

"Cloak again, Padawan," Qui-Gon reminded him.

 _"Got it,"_ Luke said telepathically. _"Let's get out of here."_

"I concur," Qui-Gon said.

Both master and apprentice stayed silent as they returned along the same path. Luke and Qui-Gon were both deep in thought about the red crystal. It had been so strange; why would the force want Luke to have a red crystal? He was a Jedi. Was it a warning of some sort?

Was he at risk of becoming dark? Luke thought in dismay. He'd hardly ever touched the dark. His master had made sure that he was extremely careful in that regard. He'd never been allowed to train angry and while he'd occasionally slipped, it was nothing more than a moment, and he'd never actually used the dark side.

Luke waited until he was two blocks away from the palace before he turned on his comm again to contact Han. "Han," he said. "Luke here. What did you need me for earlier?"

"Kid," Han said, sounding relieved. "I thought maybe you'd gotten into trouble when you cut me off." Well, Han wasn't completely wrong when he'd said that. Dropping his force cloak in the middle of the imperial palace could probably be considered getting into trouble.

"No, I'm fine," Luke assured him. "So what was it that you commed about in the first place, anyways?"

"Oh, that," Han said. "Sold the pearl. Got a hundred twenty thousand credits for it. Turns out rich people really don't know how to barter here in Imperial Center."

"Oh, wow," Luke breathed. "A hundred and twenty thousand credits? That's sixty thousand each. Wow. That's awesome!"

"Believe me kid," Han said. "I was shocked too. Thought I wouldn't get more than eighty thousand credits for that thing. But you know how nobles are about jewelry."

"Uh," Luke began. "No, no I don't."

"What? Oh, I forgot. You're an outer rim hick."

"Aren't you?" Luke asked.

"Nah," Han said. "Corellia's in the core worlds, and even if it wasn't, I've traveled around more than enough to know that nobles just can't resist jewelry of any kind."

"I'll take your word for it," Luke said.

There was silence for a few seconds until Han changed the subject. "So . . . Skywalker. When are you planning on leaving? I mean, I'm fine just staying on the ship with Chewie or leaving right now. But it's getting kind of late and you said the trip was going to take a few days."

"Oh, yeah," Luke said. "Uh, I think- give me a second." He covered the comm and turned to face Qui-Gon. "What is it, Master?" His master immediately stopped waving his ghostly hand over Luke's face- it was really rather strange looking through a force ghost.

"You should stay the night in Coruscant," Qui-Gon said.

"What?" Luke asked incredulously. "Master, I know we talked about your senility earlier . . ."

"And we decided that I wasn't senile," Qui-Gon finished.

"That's not what I was going to say," Luke said. "I never agreed that you weren't senile, Master."

"There we go again with the random insults, followed by the allegedly respectful title of Master," Qui-Gon said drily.

"You don't think calling you 'Master' is respectful?" Luke asked innocently. "Maybe I should start calling you senile old man."

"For the last time, Padawan, I am not senile." Qui-Gon sniffed, turning away in feigned hurt.

"I've yet to see proof of that," Luke said. "Why the kriff should I stay in Coruscant? We should head out now so we can get home sooner!"

"What reason do you have to rush?" Qui-Gon asked him innocently. "You're not going to be in Coruscant every day. Take some time to go sightseeing."

"Sightseeing?" Luke asked incredulously. "Master, it's a risk even coming here. The longer I stay, the more danger there is."

"The Emperor won't be back for another seven days, at the very least," Qui-Gon said, sighing when Luke still didn't look convinced. "Fine. The real reason I'm trying to get you to stay the night is because the force wills it."

"The force wants me to see the sights," Luke said, scoffing. "Sure, Master. I totally believe that."

"If you would only reach out to it, Padawan, you would feel that I'm right."

"I'll try," Luke said, "but don't expect me to actually- oh wait, I do feel it. Never mind."

"So you see why you should stay in Coruscant," Qui-Gon said smugly.

"I see that the force says I should," Luke said. "But just an hour ago, it told me to pick up a Sith kyber crystal. I'm not so sure about the force's sanity either."

"The force is not insane, Padawan. It is also not a conscious being. It is an energy field."

"So how does it know what we should do?" Luke challenged, crossing his arms.

"Padawan, now is not the time for philosophical questions," Qui-Gon said with a long suffering sigh. "Has the force ever led you astray?"

"No," Luke said, rolling his eyes. "It hasn't. Fine. But I want you to explain the force to me in more detail when we get back home. I'm not some four year old anymore. I want to know how the world works."

"The world or the force?" Qui-Gon asked. "And by the world, do you mean the galaxy, or Tatooine in particular?"

"Just- never mind," Luke said. "I'll stay."

He chose that moment to finally notice the muffled noises coming from his comm, and uncovered it. "-Walker, I just need a simple answer. Answer your damn comm!"

"I'm here," Luke said into the comm.

"Oh, good," Han said. "I thought you'd completely forgotten about little ol' me. I'd like to think I'm not very forgettable, and if not me, then you should have at least remembered Chewie. He's a wookie- pretty noticeable, by my reckoning."

"I didn't forget," Luke said. "I was just figuring out what you asked- when I'm planning to leave."

"And have you?" Han asked. Luke couldn't see it, but he got the feeling that Han was raising an eyebrow on the other end of the comm.

"Yes, I have," Luke answered. "I'll be staying the night in the city, but we'll be leaving early in the morning."

"How early?" Han asked. "I'll be sleeping on the Falcon either way, but it'll be nice to know so I can get her up and running."

"I'd say . . . oh-seven hundred-ish," Luke said.

"Sounds like a plan, kid," Han said, before hanging up.

* * *

"Report, Jade," her master commanded as soon as she turned on the holocomm. For a second, she wondered about the fact that her master wasn't doing anything at eighteen hundred hours, but reasoned that he wouldn't be particularly busy without the royal court to tend to. And even so, she was his hand. She took priority over all the sniveling nobles. She was unique and her master needed her information. Especially in this instance.

"Master. I was practicing my dancing in the ballroom, as I routinely do at fifteen hundred hours, when I was interrupted by a loud voice from right outside. It sounded as if it came from a comm."

"Get to the point, Jade," her master commanded her.

"The voice said 'Skywalker.'" She could see her master immediately stiffen in the hologram before relaxing once again.

"Skywalker?" her master repeated. "Are you certain, my hand?"

"Yes, Master." So the information was important after all. Perhaps she would be rewarded by her master? "I could find no trace of anyone being there when I reached out with my force sense mere seconds later, but I recognized the name Skywalker from the history of the Clone Wars. I thought perhaps the Jedi Skywalker had somehow survived the purge." Her master looked as if he was about to say something, before thinking better of it. She waited a moment to make sure she wasn't interrupting him before she continued.

"I went down to check the Kyber crystals, as it's the only Jedi paraphernalia that you have left relatively unguarded in the palace."

"And did you notice any missing?" her master questioned her.

"Yes, Master," she said. "I noticed one of the red crystals missing, and I cannot be certain, but I believe the Jedi took one of the blue or green crystals as well."

"Is that all?" her master asked.

"No, Master," she said. "Once I noticed the crystals missing, I hurried outside. I trailed a blonde youth, as he was the only nearby person I could see, and because I could not sense anything from him when I reached out with the force."

"And did he sense you?" her master prodded.

"No, Master," she said. "I was careful, and I do not think that he noticed me. I trailed him further until he took out his comm. I was close enough to listen in on his conversation. The person on the other end called him Skywalker again, multiple times. There was one point during the conversation where his voice dropped to a whisper, and I could not make it out, even when I enhanced my hearing." She paused, waiting for the reprimand.

"Continue," he commanded.

She did; her master must have been very interested in the information to not scold her at the very least. "He is planning to leave early tomorrow morning, at oh-seven hundred hours. The man he was contacting is apparently a Corellian, and is traveling with a Wookie that he called Chewie. The conversation seemed mainly to confirm that Skywalker's contact sold some kind of pearl. They got one hundred and twenty thousand credits for it."

"Very interesting," her master mused. "Is that all, Jade?"

"I also trailed Skywalker to Tierney Inn, a ways away from the palace. That's all, Master."

"Very well," her master said. "This is what you shall do . . ."

* * *

 **A/N: That's a wrap, folks. So I had someone asking me where Mara would come in. There she is. Slight spoiler: she's going to show up for a good portion of the next chapter, and then she won't be back for a while. I've already said that LukexMara will not be the main focus of the story, so this shouldn't be very shocking.**

 **Yes, I made up the inn. Luke couldn't have gotten into any hotels without reservations, and none of the Coruscant inns in canon fit my needs.**

 **I tried to keep Han in character, and I hope I did it well. Any comments on that would be appreciated. Was I right on the money? Close? Didn't seem like Han at all? Tell me what you think.**

 **I didn't describe Coruscant that much because it wasn't really a focus. I'm not going to wax lyrical about it because Luke is more focused on getting in and out of the palace than admiring the sights for more than a few seconds.**

 **Chewie didn't get too many lines. But he doesn't really in canon either. Eventually, Luke will become more familiar with him and start to understand Shyriiwook and Chewbacca will have more of a presence.**

 **While some people decide in their stories that it's likely that Vader has erased all records of his past, it just works better for the story if Mara is able to identify the name Skywalker. Then she has more of a reason to check on the kyber crystals.**

 **If you enjoyed the chapter, follow and/or favorite. Or even leave a review, telling me what you liked so I can continue to do it. If you don't like it, tell me in a review, and maybe follow me on the off chance that I get better.**

 **I try to update regularly, but with five stories vying for my attention right now, I rarely ever maintain weekly updates. Keep faith though, that I'll get another chapter out eventually. I haven't forgotten about any of my stories.**


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